Studio Notes #54

Hi, Good People. Here's issue #54 of Studio Notes™—quick bits delivered to you each Friday.

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Mike van der Sanden answers the question, What melodies can be found in typography? The result is surprisingly soothing tones. Mike takes letterforms and creates a "piano roll" type of graphical shape that he then hooks up to audio software to create music. Fascinating merge of art and tech. (Hat tip to Sarah Kuehnle via Secret Club™)

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Wallets are an annoying necessity. I wish I could get by with just a couple of cards, but credit, debit, business credit, license, health card, etc.—I still need them with me most of the time. Plus a little cash and some SimpleBits stickers. So, the never-ending hunt for the perfect, space-saving wallet carries on. Though, I think I may have found a candidate after using it for years, then trying a few others only to go back to: The Apex Slim Sleeve by Bellroy. It's so compact and has a super-satisfying magnetic closure—thinner than most because of its stitch-less, heat-sealed construction. It fits everything I need yet sits stealthily in my front pocket, and sometimes perfectly in the extra coin pocket that most jeans have. But that magnetic closure...Can we talk about how magical magnets are, in general? Like, they have unlimited energy. Someone should look more into that.

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I apologize, but I'm still on a Tron high from last week. Ignore the negative reviews and see this one on a big screen. A bonus of the new movie coming out is more content being surfaced about the original films. This little video about how the TRON music was made in 1982 was a cool homage to Wendy Carlos, the synth legend and composer of the original score (which I've always loved). If you're into vintage synths and/or Tron, you will enjoy this one.

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I had a great time chatting with Rory and Matt at Font Awesome about the creative journey, making type, learning new things at middle age, solving little puzzles everyday, and making stuff. I've long been a fan of how FA has been operating over the years, so it was an honor to be on their podcast. You can listen to Part 1 of our conversation now (with Part 2 coming in a couple of weeks).

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What are you working on?

It rained this past weekend, so we're rescheduling the first Type Walk Boston for Secret Club™ members. It'll now be on November 9th. Secret details to follow. The current plan is to walk part of the Freedom Trail with cameras and capture what interesting type we might find. Then retire for a beverage or two. If it rains again, well, then maybe we look into branded umbrellas.

Have a powerful weekend, friends. See you back here next Friday.

Cheers,